ABSTRACT
Swidden agriculture in North Central Timor, Indonesia, has undergone major changes over the past 60 years. It has evolved from subsistence production in a feudal framework toward more market-oriented agricultural systems. Timorese farmers, while undergoing these changes, have also faced increased population pressure and the virtual disappearance of their natural forest vegetation. Much has since been written about the agroforestry systems that have evolved in the search for more intensive land-use strategies in the area (Field et al. 1992; Fischer 1992; Djogo 1995). Most of this literature has focused on the “Amarasi” system, which has been lauded as a successful model of fallow intensification (Field et al. 1992; Fischer 1992). But one system that has been underreported is the use of Sesbania grandiflora in North Central Timor district, of the Nusa Tenggara Timur Province (NTT), particularly along the coastal areas near Wini and in the mountainous former kingdoms of Tunbaba and Manamas. Only Rachmawati and Sinaga (1995) mention the use of S. grandiflora in the area, its potential as a multipurpose tree, and its common use by farmers. But they did not describe S. grandiflora’s use by farmers as an improved fallow.
